Find Police Records in Calvert County

Calvert County police records are managed by the Sheriff's Office in Prince Frederick, Maryland. The county's Records Unit handles requests for police reports, body camera footage, and arrest files. You can submit a request through an online portal, by mail, or by email. Calvert County has been in the news in recent years over police records access and fees, making it a notable case in Maryland's push for more transparency. Court records from the county are also available for free through the state judiciary search system.

Calvert County Sheriff's Office Records

The Calvert County Sheriff's Office is the main law enforcement agency for the county. Their office is at 30 Church Street in Prince Frederick, MD 20678. The general number is (410) 535-2800. For records specifically, call (410) 535-1600 extension 2464. Lt. Col. David Payne serves as the Custodian of Records and can be reached at David.Payne@calvertcountymd.gov.

Calvert County is a smaller jurisdiction in southern Maryland, but it has been at the center of some of the state's biggest fights over police records access. The ACLU sued the county over fees for misconduct records, with the sheriff's office once quoting $224,000 for a single request. That case was eventually settled, and the sheriff agreed to produce policing records without charging excessive fees. This settlement matters because it set an example for how other Maryland counties handle similar requests under Anton's Law.

The Calvert County Sheriff's Office homepage is shown below.

This page provides contact details and general information about law enforcement services in Calvert County.

How to Request Calvert County Police Records

The Calvert County Records Unit handles all police records requests. You can submit a request through the county's online request portal. The portal lets you ask for police reports and body camera footage. Important: submit separate requests for police reports and body camera footage. They are treated as different record types. You can also mail your request to the Calvert County Sheriff's Office, ATTN: Custodian of Records, 30 Church Street, Prince Frederick, MD 20678.

Copy fees are $0.25 per page. The first two hours of search time are free. After that, the county can charge based on the hourly pay of the staff member doing the work. Payment is required before processing starts. That is a detail you should know before you submit your request. If costs exceed what you expected, you can narrow your request to bring the price down. The MPIA at §4-206 lets you ask for a fee estimate before the county starts working on your records.

The Records Unit page for the Calvert County Sheriff's Office is shown below.

This page explains the records request process and provides contact details for the Calvert County Records Unit.

Calvert County Police Records Available

The sheriff's office in Calvert County holds several types of police records. Incident and criminal reports are the most common requests. Body camera footage is a growing area, and Calvert County has specific procedures for releasing it. Accident reports can be obtained through the sheriff's office or through CRASHDOCS.ORG, which is an online tool for getting crash reports in Maryland.

Arrest records from Calvert County show who was taken into custody and what charges were filed. Use of force data and records about strip searches or body cavity searches are now more accessible thanks to Anton's Law. Before that law passed, these types of police records were nearly impossible for the public to get. The Calvert County Detention Center also has inmate search tools that can help you find out if someone is in custody right now.

• Police incident and criminal reports
• Body camera footage
• Accident reports (also at CRASHDOCS.ORG)
• Arrest and booking records
• Use of force data

Records Access and MPIA in Calvert County

The Calvert County MPIA page explains how the county handles public information requests. The Maryland Public Information Act at §4-101 gives you the right to ask for any public record from Calvert County. You do not need a reason. The county must respond within 10 working days and provide records within 30 days.

This page outlines how Calvert County processes records requests under the Maryland Public Information Act.

Anton's Law had a big impact on Calvert County. The law at Public Safety Article §3-101 reclassified police misconduct records so they are no longer treated as sealed personnel files. The ACLU's lawsuit against Calvert County over excessive fees for these records drew national attention. The settlement meant the sheriff's office had to produce policing records at reasonable cost. A Police Accountability Board now operates in Calvert County as well, reviewing complaints and recommending discipline for officers.

Expungement is another part of the picture. Under Criminal Procedure Article §10-101, you can ask to have certain Calvert County police records removed if charges were dropped or you were found not guilty. Shielding under §10-306 is available for some older misdemeanor convictions. Both tools affect what shows up when someone searches for records in the county.

Calvert County Police Records Online

The Maryland Judiciary Case Search is free and covers all court cases in Calvert County. You can search by name, case number, or date. The tool shows case information but not full document images. For the actual police reports, you still need to go through the sheriff's office records unit.

The Maryland Sex Offender Registry lets you search for registered offenders in Calvert County. Criminal history checks go through the CJIS Central Repository for $38. The Calvert County Detention Center has its own inmate lookup tool for checking who is currently in custody. These online tools give you several ways to search for police records and related information in Calvert County without visiting an office in person.

Nearby Counties

Calvert County borders several other Maryland counties. These pages cover police records in the surrounding areas.